Goat bagging up???

[Earthbound]

I have a 5 yr old nubianX doe that has never been bred. I got her from a place that kept thir goats in terrible conditions and have been working on her hooves and diet before breeding her. Now i'm noticng that her bags are getting full??they are soft, not hard or lumpy and there is NO WAy she has been bred. I have her seperated with her sister who is fine.
Could this be mastitis(sp)??? Or anyone have any experience with "false pregnancies"?? Any hep would be appreciated. Also I am on my own here as our livestock vet just decided to get out of all livestock .
Another question...can i worm with Eprinex(eprinomectin) orally? If so, what would a dose be for a 200lb lady? I generally use Valbazan, but the above mentioned vet does not have any in stock and is actually quite unhelpfull at this point. I do have the eprinex, so though i'd ask if it was safe. its a pour on for beef and diary cattle.
thanks
corry

[BlueHeronFarm]

Eprinex is fine - give orally ... look up the dose by doing a search in this forum - search eprinex- I think it is 1 cc per 10 pounds weight. (but mine is out in the barn, so I'm not 100% sure)
She's 5 and never been bred?? Has she ever milked before as a precocious milker? I don't have mastitis experience - sorry I can't help with that.

[chamoisee]

Get her on a milking stand and place your hands on her belly right in front of her udder and wait for a few minutes. Listen to your hands.

I don't know how long you've had her.....but stuff happens.

Um, you don't have sheep, do you?

[Idahoe]

Do you mean like "geep" ?

I don't know, I knew my goat's due dates because I didn't have a buck at all, and he knocked up two of them the day he arrived . But just from what I've read and heard, goats are very good at getting bred, almost magically. I think before you do another thing, see if you can't feel babies moving. Two of my does bagged up six weeks before they were due. But I could feel kids even then. I had to sit there for a while, but you can feel them on the right side just in front of the udder, or higher up later on the in pregancy. Is her vulva pooching (no little wrinkles around the edges)?

If she's not pregnant, it's a whole different story. Good luck and let us know what happens .

[Earthbound]

Thanks for the reply's and the info on eprinex!!!!
I've had her for almost a year now and there is no way she's prego as i don't have any bucks??? My friend keeps bugging me that the deer did it..lol!! And no there are no sheep either..lol.
She seems perfectly fine otherwise. Her coat is a bit dull for my liking, but we'll get that worked out.
corry

[chamoisee]

Ya just never know.....neighbor's bucks can get loose....goats get feral in some areas....I would not rule it out.

Now, if there are no little feet kicking her belly when you feel it (just in front of the udder, wait for 5 minutes and maybe push slightly to wake them up), her vulva is puckered up, and her belly is teh same size, then she might just be a dry doe coming into milk.

[Earthbound]

Your right, you just never can tell.
I did what you said last night and there are no little feet a kicking...her vulva is still puckered and no extra weight. Her bag is larger today then yesterday too. So when you say a dry doe coming into milk..pardon my ignorance but what exactly does that "mean" and what should I do about it???
thanks
corry

[chamoisee]

Oh, try milking her then. If the milk is white and healthy, you can milk her every day.

[Sweet Goats]

I have a friend that has a goat that is 4, never bred, and evertime she is near a baby she bags up like crazy. Do you have any babies around? Matter of fact Saturday at a show the judge made a comment that her bad was uneven, we told her that she was never bred. The judge found that had to believe, but it is true.

[Earthbound]

It's a crazy thing. There are no babies around and it just happened out of nowhere.......I talked to an old timer and he said it's propobly a false pregnancy and will run it's term and then she'll dry up. I have NO time to milk right now as I'm an organic grower and am putting in 14 hour days on the gardens as it is. It's planting season in my parts.
There apparantly is a shot out there that will terminate her "pregnancy", I'll research that one too. My big concern is mastitis setting in......
corry

[Jim S.]

Earthbound, is she swelling elsewhere? Does it appear that her belly is getting fuller, yet it is soft and feels fluid-filled? Is she passing pellets? When she urinates, is it a free flow that is full and not just dribbling? She pees without effort? Is her disposition bright, or does she seem to be dragging?

I ask all this because never-bred goats of her age and older are susceptable to mammary cancers, which spread easily to the reproductive, digestive and urinary tracts. Been there, at about this age. They will bag, and some even make insignificant amounts of milk, due to the effect of the hormones released by the cancer.

I'm not trying to alarm you and am not saying that is the case here, just that it can happen. So if this does not resolve itself soon, you may want to have a vet check her. You can check for possible tumors of the repro tract by cupping your hand around and under with the heel at the tailbase and the finger extended up under toward the bag, then squeezing the vaginal and anal area with your cupped hand. Hardness there is not a good sign. It may be difficult to assess if you don't know what you are feeling.

Just passing this along, in case.

The shot is 2cc lutylase, but I don't know it works in false preggers. They usually resolve themselves.

[moonspinner]

Could simply be a precocious milker. A maiden doe who bags up without being bred.

[Sweet Goats]

I would NOT do a Lutalice shot (termanate the pregnancy), she will be just fine.

[Earthbound]

Thanks again for all the info!! Jim S, I felt her up as suggested and no hardness or lumps.....she is urinating normal and passing pellets. I talked to a friend of a friend of a friend.....yesterday who knows the folks i got her from and she recalled that she had done the same last year and that she just eventually dried up???? She said it lasted 5 or so months??? I checked out precious milkers online and it said it was genetic...soooooo........I have no goat vet here as he "retired" last month. I'm keeping a very close eye.
thanks soooo much!
corry

[Nancy_in_GA]

Corry,
Also check specifically for a hard lump in the crease right between her leg and her udder. There is a lymph gland located there on each side. If the lymph gland is swollen, then she is fighting an infection, even though the milk may look and smell fine.

[Earthbound]

Thank you I'll check that!!
corry

[Feral Nature]

corry, it may just be a preocious udder....check out these links:

http://fiascofarm.com/goats/udder.htm

http://www.goatwisdom.com/udder_care.html

[Earthbound]

Thanks all of you!!!
Looks to me as though she is a precocious miker and had a precocious udder...... good to know she may be a good milker once she's bred. She is totally fine otherwise........
corry